Despite a strong quarantine system and lack of shared land borders, there will always be a risk of an exotic pest establishing in Australia. Should a new pest enter, one of the first steps for response in either an eradication or a management program, is the identification of methods of control. Emergency or minor use permits are therefore required to ensure that chemicals are available for…

The National Integrated Weed Management Initiative (NIWMI) aimed to provide integrated weed management strategies for the major crop-weed threats to Australian grain production. NIWMI involved a committee of leading weed researchers and extension specialists from across Australia, who met five times each year. The committee provided strategic advice to the GRDC regarding future investment in weed …

Organisation: The University of MelbourneProject start date:30 Jun 2013Project end date:30 Jun 2016

Redlegged earth mite (RLEM) is a significant threat to the establishment of grain crops. This research has led to recommendations about insecticide resistance management and improved chemical control methods for RLEM. Field surveillance, population genetics, fitness studies, and predictive models were integrated to guide long term management and monitoring across southern Australia. Notably,…

The main principles of conservation agriculture are permanent soil cover, minimal soil disturbance and diverse crop rotations, yet these are often absent from no-till systems. This project has been designed to test and further develop high quality no-till systems based on these conservation principles through the establishment of a long term trial at Cunderdin, Western Australia (WA). The project …

This project built skills in adoption, extension, mentoring and evaluation of experienced advisers. The training program was conducted in two phases. The first component focused on developing skills and understanding of grower decision making processes, the extension and adoption process and improved participants' understanding of the psychology of change. The second phase consisted of a field…

The GRDC Northern, Southern and Western grains industry regions face four problems: 1. A decline in the number of experienced agronomists. 2. A lack of experience of junior advisory personnel at the completion of their studies. 3. Falling enrolments in Agricultural Science courses. 4. Poor awareness of agricultural career pathways. Despite many workforce skills and training initiatives,…

The project aimed to equip participants (growers) with the knowledge and confidence to use new electronic technologies, including social media, to access grains Research, Development & Extension (R,D&E) information and implement improved on-farm management practices through targeted regional social media and technology training. Twenty-two workshops were delivered across all of Australia's grain…

Farming is a unique business, offering an opportunity to work with nature, technology, the markets and people. Done well, it offers a fulfilling life and business career. However, the business of farming is becoming more challenging with greater variations in commodity prices, continual uncertainty with weather patterns and the challenges of declining terms of trade. At the same time, the demand…

GRDC invested in the Regional Cropping Solutions Network (RCSN) in 2011 with the primary aim to identify local research, development and extension priorities. There are five RCSNs across the Western Region, which have been divided on a port zone basis with two in Kwinana (Kwinana East and Kwinana West). The RCSN consists of a mix of over 70 growers and industry professionals who meet formally…

Nine members of the Yuna Farm Improvement Group (YFIG) travelled to Perth to attend the Global Herbicide Resistance Challenge Conference (GHRC) in February 2013. The members, including an agronomist, heard first-hand about the research and developments that have been taking place in the fight against herbicide resistance. After the conference, the members presented their findings to the…